The Divine Coast

Playtest Concept

The Playtest uses Fort Uloss from the Bruinia Adventure Setting and Saltmarsh form the DMG II as a starting point for Characters. Everything the characters need is available in the two cities so adventures generally begin and end in these locations. Each Session runs an average length of 3-5 hours with the Characters always back in a City to retrieve Rewards. This allows for more versatility among both Characters and Game Masters. The intent here is to make it easy for a Character to join a Playtest under any Game Master running this system.

Adventure Record Sheet

Every session is recorded on an Adventure Record Sheet making it easy for Players and Game Masters to easily find information on Adventure Threads or pending contracts. Players can record Events, Experience, Treasure, Reputation and Faction Points earned with various Factions. The back of each Adventure Record Sheet contains blank event tables where Players can document encounters throughout the session.

Faction

This generalization refers to all of the different kinds of organizations that provide Adventure Contracts. A Faction can either be a merchant house, a thieves guild, a order of holy crusaders, a coven of witches, a crime syndicate or any other organization with Agents able to provide adventures and rewards.

Contracts

Unlike the traditional Campaign style of Game Mastery, Contracts allow room for continuing Adventure Threads under various Game Masters. Contracts are acquired through Members or Agents in a Guild. They brief the Players on quest objectives and give Faction Points and Rewards upon completion. Agents can also provide Faction Based Rewards like weapons or magic items.

Faction Points

Faction Points can be obtained from completing adventures granted by a Guild Agent or Member through contractual commitment. At the completion of each adventure or contract, the player will be granted one or more Faction based on the terms of the contract. Players have the opportunity to earn more than one Faction a session, but never more than their Character level. Faction should be considered professional favor, one good deed deserves another in return. It has no set value, therefore cannot be used as a bargaining tool or leverage in obtaining an item or when gathering information from Guild Members or Agents (see Reputation).

Reputation Score

A players Reputation is the total unspent Faction the Player has accumulated over her career with a specific Guild. This number does not change when Faction Points are spent and only increases after all spent Faction is regained then surpassed. The Reputation Score can be added to Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information and Sense Motive checks when negotiating with guild Agents. Enough Reputation ensures that should a Character die in action that she be “resurrected” by the Guild Agent.

Rewards

Using Table 12-4 from the Pathfinder Core Rulebook the Game Master can ensure that reward items do not increase the Character Wealth above the appropriate level. [Example; Mora, a third level Cleric is granted an Amulet of Natural Armor +1 as a Reward for returning a scroll to the Order of Light. The item does not exceed Character Wealth Level three and therefore is legal. However if Mora were to receive a +2 item it would exceed her Character Wealth, breaking the balance of the system.]

Experience

Each Game Session is worth one thousand Experience Points. To further simplify level advancement, zeros are not included (1,000=1).